Japan Recycles CO2 to Petrochemicals

Reduction of carbon dioxide to petrochemical intermediates

 

 

Herein, from Japan, we have yet more credible affirmation that Carbon Dioxide, as emitted from various sources, including human agricultural activity and natural volcanism, is a raw material resource of potential value.

 

The excerpt: 

Reduction of carbon dioxide to petrochemical intermediates

KANECO S; IIBA K.; OHTA K ; MIZUNO T.

Department of Chemistry for Materials, Faculty of Engineering, Mie University, Tsu, Mie, JAPON

The electrochemical reduction of CO2 at the Cu electrode was investigated in methanol-based electrolyte using various cesium supporting salts as the ionophore at an extremely low temperature (243 K). Cesium acetate, chloride, bromide, iodide, and thiocyanate were used as the ionophore. The main products from CO2 by electrochemical reduction were methane, ethylene, ethane, carbon monoxide, and formic acid. In the methanol-based electrolyte using cesium supporting salts, except for acetate, the Faradaic efficiency for ethylene was larger than that for methane. This research can contribute to large-scale manufacturing of petrochemical intermediate products, such as methane and ethylene, from readily available and cheap raw materials; CO2-saturated methanol from industrial absorbers (the Rectisol process). Thus the synthesis of hydrocarbons by the electrochemical reduction of CO2 may be of practical interest for fuel production, storage of solar energy, and production of intermediate materials for the petrochemical industry.

Energy sources; ISSN 0090-8312   CODEN EGYSAO; 2000, vol. 22, n2, pp. 127-135 (12 ref.); Taylor & Francis, Philadelphia, PA, 1973" 

 

So, in 1973, we knew that CO2 had potential use in "the synthesis of hydrocarbons ... and production of intermediate materials for the petrochemical industry".

 

And, we are still trying to either tax our coal-use industries out of existence, through Cap&Trade shell games, or force them to help Big Oil squeeze more of the stuff he extorts us all with out of his nearly-depleted reservoirs, through enforced geologic CO2 sequestration?

 

How much money have we wasted on debating all of that nonsense, over the past 36 years, when we could have been building factories both to convert our abundant domestic coal into the liquid fuels we need and to recycle Carbon Dioxide into other "hydrocarbons ... and ... materials for the petrochemical industry"?